"Kayruv-Van takes it on the road"
The Jewish Encyclopedia
of Western Pennsylvania
A project of the Rauh Jewish Archives at the Heinz History Center
The Kayruv Van was a mobile educational unit bringing Jewish books, music, dance, art, and history materials to smaller Jewish communities throughout Western Pennsylvania.
The Hebrew Institute of Pittsburgh started the Kayruv (Hebrew for “outreach”) Van in 1987 with funded from the United Jewish Federation. The program included a van outfitted with books, audio-visual equipment, music, and films, as well as staff support from the Hebrew Institute. Through the years, staff support included coordinator JoAnn Spiegel, librarians Michaella Segall and Renee Abrams, music teachers Sharon Leibowitz and Julie Harris, Israel dance specialists Beverly Steinberg and Cherie Maharam, art specialist Agnes Klein, and Jewish and Israel history specialist Laurie Eisenberg.
Through its affiliation with the Hebrew Institute, the Kayruv Van was incorporated into the new Jewish Education Institute in 1991 and continued operating at least through 1993.
